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For me they did ignore it because Sam was still trying to force Dean and Jack together. Sam decided that they shouldn't hunt last week so why is he suddenly so sgung ho. It's coming across Sam feeling cooped up more than him being worried about Jack. Realistically, Sam and Dean should have gone on separate hunts. Because that's a good solution. Dean tells Sam he can't be around Jack and Sam's solution is to put them together. It's like it went in one ear and out the other. I get show reasons but it still feels like Sam doesn't care about Dean's feelings on this matter. It may be in character for Dean to apologize more but its frustrating, especially when its something Dean shouldn't feel guilty about. He should be entitled to his feelings. But I feel like I'm crossing the line into bitch/Jerk so I'll leave it there.

Now that Dean has acquiesed to Sam, I guess we'll be back to Valium Dean next week. The only thing that is making this season bearable so far is Jensen's acting and the fact that Jack wants Dean's approval more than Sam's. I'm sure that was an accident as I don't think Dabb meant for that to happen.

My problem is that it completely ignored the end of episode 3. We had Dean lay his feelings bare about why it was hard for him to be around Jack. Sam didn't care about that. He's still trying to dictate how Dean has to be around Jack and act around Jack and when they're going to hunt. Sam's the one acting like John here. Dean's arc is supposed to be grief but he's the only one who didn't get to actually get a cathartic moment in this ep. So where was Sam's apology for pushing Dean?

This is why I started calling Sam, St. Sam. The writers practically canonized him in this one.

Yes, I didn't get that either. Mary was cold to both of them and kept them at arms length. If Sam wanted to play WWF with mary why not send her a text, and call her.

This ep went exactly as I predicted. Dean's grief was ignored and just used to make him a bad guy and a bully. Despite what he admitted last ep, Sam didn't care one bit. So don't tell me that Sam is empathetic. Sam is giving orders, ignoring Dean's feelings, and dictating when they should hunt. How exactly is Dean the one acting like John. Dean calling himself a dick again, having to apologize for having legitmate fears and feelings. Getting knocked out twice. The only reason Dean got a kill last week was becasue for whatever reason they gave Jared a week off. So its not surprising Sam got it this week. But it demonstarted why to me Dean is a better person. At least he apologized for being a dick to Sam. Sam just acted like it was his due rather than offering his own apology for pushing. This is on my top 10 worst list.

If your interested in seeing Dean be treated like a character and an actual human being, skip this ep. Just like I thought. Sam's grief, Jack's grief, Dean gets knocked out twice and this seemed to be written with a purpose of making Dean the bad guy. Then of course, Sam and Jack save the day. No one will ever convince me this isn't personal. While I usually like Misha's acting, I don't know what this was.

Im guessing this is supposed to be is the glass half full or half empty. Strange there was no sneak peek

I remember being surprised by this too. The first time I watched it I couldn't figure out why Dean was so snippy toward the Victim of the Week. He usually wasn't that short with them. Then finding out she was the Monster of the week all along and suddenly it made sense. It wasn't one of my favorite eps, but the ending of Playthings also took me by surprise. I didn't suspect the other girl was imaginary.

This is my favorite Dean and Cas video.

I wasn't sure of the best thread for this question but I figure here would best because its not about one character or one season. I was wondering what others "hidden gem" episodes are. Those episodes that are often over looked by fans, bloggers or other news outfits that you really like, whether it be an overlooked MOTW or unrated mytharc ep. The ones that don't get a lot of buzz. For me its Freak and Geeks. I loved this one. For me it had every characteristic about Dean that I love on display. He was smart, and a leader. I always like seeing him interact with kids. I liked that hunting was still horror related rather than fantasy. It also made me think that Dean would be a really good mentor for up and coming hunters. I really liked Jensen's delivery of the line. "Let's not be so blood thirsty that any one will do." I also liked the twist (if you can call it that), that Victor was setting up easy hunts to make the kids think their better than they were. One critizism I have of later seasons is that hunting is too easy. That felt more real. The kids were not great hunters and they shouldn't be at that age. The only thing I didn't like was the contrived ending so that Krissy could get the confrontation with Victor, but it didn't bug me too much because i loved everything else about Dean in this ep.

I read an interesting post on Tumblr about this. About how Dean no longer fits in the Supernatural world. Hunting used to presented as something that was a cold hard lonely life that most often meant dying young. It reminds me of the difference between how Dean talked about hunting to Jo and Claire. He told Jo to hold on to what she had, that hunting wasn't the romantic story she heard about at the Roadhouse. With Claire he gives encorages it somewhat. Why the complete 180? We saw a hunter like Richie back in Sin City. He was clearly not cut our for the job and ended up getting killed. There was the ghostfacers. I didn't mind them becasue we saw just how inept they were. It wasn't skill that kept them alive it was just dumb luck. Now we have Charlie whinging that hunting isn't magical enough, and you can be a good hunter by downloading an ap, and its something teenagers should do in their spare time. Don't listen to the guy that years of experience. That end scene really came out of no where it felt like Jody threw Dean under the bus. Actually, I found Dean and Jody's interaction in this ep kind of cold. It was like two strangers hunting together. It's gone from horror to fantasy. Hunting is now an an adventure not something to be feared. Monsters don't seem to be scary anymore because they all have sob stories and are really just misunderstood. I think that is also what is turning me off the spin off. Dean is the the only character that hasn't really made the transition yet, so its making him the odd man out. Here's the link http://veneredirimmel.tumblr.com/post/166978489150/i-wanted-to-expand-on-the-idea-i-have-seen

I really hope this isn't the direction their going becasue I think this whole storyline is over played. It seemed like Sam made his peace with this a long time ago. I have zero desire to see Sam have powers again. It's also over played. The problem with this trajectory is that it once again puts all the burdens on Dean's shoulders. (Not saying your saying this Catrox, just how it would come across to me.) That Sam can't accept himself until Dean does. That's completely unfair to Dean. Sam needs to learn to make his own decisions without adding a but.... If Sam has powers and wants to use them. Use them. Not to mention, Dean's already proven time and time again that he accepts Sam. That there is nothing Sam could do that Dean won't forgive. It's just going to make me wonder why Dean even bothers trying.

I wouldn't mind it if it was handled in a similar fashion to the way Dean came around on Lenore. He saw with this own two eyes that she deserved a chance. So if Dean can find common ground with Jack on both of them missing their moms, then its Dean coming around on his own, not because Sam told him too.

I seemed the real battle was between Jennifer Hudson and Kelly Clarkson. I was excepting a knockout battle between them.

IMO, what Sam did here is the exact opposite of backing off. He did try to tell Dean what he had to do in regards to Jack. He told him he had to stay and help train Jack to use his powers. Then later Sam left the bunker, leaving Jack all by himself so it seems that his primary motivation for telling Dean he had to stay wasn't about worrying about having back up with Jack. It's true that if Jack is at the bunker that some contact is bound to happen but there are way to handle it without shoving Jack at Dean which is exactly what Sam did there. Sam could have taken the opposite approach. "Hey, Dean. I caught a case and I know you could probably let off some steam so why not go help Missouri and Jody. I'll stay with Jack." Sam could tell Dean he understands that he isn't Jack's biggest fan but there is no other place to put him right now, so all i'm asking is that you be civil. I think that would have worked. Dean isn't as stubborn or inflexible as the show tries to make him out to be. Since Sam likes to play arm chair psychologist and explain about Dean's crossed wires why not try to explain to Jack that probably meant that he'd kill Jack if Jack turned evil. This is usually Dean's policy on giving monsters a chance. Even if he didn't hear that from Dean he could have given him the benefit of the doubt.

I disagree here because of the two when it comes to the big issues I find Sam is the far more stubborn of the two. Ruby, Demon blood, Lucifer's cage, visions, British men of letters. Sam went this way on all those. They all went the same way. When Sam makes up his mind about something he doesn't want to hear counter opinions. Dean said, that about the older brother once. Sam did want he wanted to anyway so its not like he listened or cared what Dean said. So I think Dean could be as calm and rational, if Sam has set his mind to it there is no changing it. if was aware he wouldn't have told Dean he ran to Ruby becasue she didn't treat him like a kid brother. He had zero self awareness in that scene. Dean ended up being made to be the one to apologize 3 times over the season for losing trust in Sam. After 5.5 there was nothing about Sam having deserved to lose that trust. So IMO, Sam's big mistakes really don't lead to long term detriments to the character. Usually get gets big hero moments, while Dean gets to apologize for treating Sam like a kid. We'll have to agree to disagree on Gadreel because I don't think Dean was let of the hook. He was disowned and had his whole character trashed by Sam. Sam losing faith or not trusting his brother isn't new. He didn't have any faith in Dean after he went missing in s7, and he lost faith in Dean during s4. That wasn't unique to s10. I'll give you him trusting Gadreel, but in S4, with Cas I disagree becasue Cas earned Dean's trust. While s6 Cas was acting shady, Dean knew it, he just didn't want to believe it. "Dean trying to hard to be loyal while every instinct is telling him otherwise" Sam wanting to join didn't negatively impact the character. He got the big hero speech and Dean wasn't even allowed to be upset that Sam lied to him. Then the show made him sign up too. Sam could back off and not shove Jack at Dean and demand he play babysitter. He could tell Dean he'll take full responsibility for Jack. Dean isn't actively looking to kill Jack, he said if Jack hurts someone he'll take him out. Sam laid the blame at Dean's feet if Jack goes bad. If Jack has Sam's influence, and Cas's and his sainted mothers, Dean's shouldn't really be the tipping point. But Sam seems to want to pass the buck if things go sideways.

The problem is that while both Sam and Dean have some good points the writers aren't interested in them. If they were they wouldn't be writing Jack as if he's some puppy Dean enjoys kicking. If Jack goes bad or does something bad it won't be because he's the son of Satan it will be because Dean hurt his feelings. Its the same if Sam loses Jack's trust. It won't be becasue Sam lied it will be because Dean told. There is no way the show actually holds Jack responsible for what he does. It will all be on Dean's shoulders. It's why I was dreading this whole "grief" arc. If I thought the writers were actually interested in exploring it or actually have people be sympathtic to what Dean is going through, I might be interested in it. But so far its coming across exactly the way I thought it would. Weak Dean who whats to give up and is mean to little Jackie vs Strong Paragon of Virture St. Sam. At least Jensen is trying to act against the writing. But there is only so much he can do.

It's why I stopped believing in the so called "bond"

The problem with this is that it's very manipulative. As someone on Tumblr pointed out Sam's speech to Dean is very reflective of what John did just before he died. First he uses flattery right before putting an unfair burden on Deans' shoulders. Sam seems to be forgetting a lot of history. He might still be standing but a lot more bad came out of Sam using his powers then good. Sam slid down that slippery slope so fast. It resulted in him strangling Dean, lying, and choosing a demon over him. Ultimately, it resulted in Lucifer being free. A lot of people lost their lives in the crossfire. There have also been times that Dean has come close to to "putting a bullet in Sam. With Sam's demon blood they also had Chuck. Who pulled them out of harms way and scrubbed the physical craving for demon blood out of Sam's system. They have no help right now. Also does Sam not remember that he resents it when Dean tries to look out for him and views it as babying. Sam was not receptive at all when Dean tried to keep him on the straight and narrow during that whole demon blood saga. Sam specifically told Dean went to Ruby to get away from Dean because Dean wasn't letting him make his own decisions and Ruby was.. This repeated itself during the trials and caused Sam to reject and resent Dean's help which resulted in Benny having to go bail him out. Based on this, say Dean comes around and agree to help with Jack. What happens if Sam wants to teach Jack use X power and Dean doesn't think its a good idea. Is Sam going to accept Dean's feedback or is he going to get stubborn again and think Dean's just trying to take over? Based on how Sam reacted to Dean's big brothering attempts in the past this is a very valid question, IMO. Does Sam want Dean just to blindly follow or is he open to actually listening, when has demonstrated in the past he prefers the blind follow. As we saw in last weeks episode, he expects Dean to just do what he says in regards to Jack. Since he made the decision for them about skipping out of the hunt. But its okay for Sam to go out and leave Jack all alone. If Sam can't see that Ruby played him like a puppet master he's very lacking in self awareness. Sam is not the best judge of character. When he sets him mind to something he sees what he wants to see. Ruby, his visions, the British men of Letters all played him. As stubborn as Dean's being, Sam is being right now. He refuses to consider that Jack might go bad. That is just as bad. (Now, I get the writers are portraying Jack as dangerous as a 3 day old kitten to highlight St. Sam vs A-hole Dean, but Sam and Dean don't have access to scripts). Sam's also lacking self awareness where Dean is concerned. He's so wrapped up in project Jack that he can't see Dean's barely hanging on right now. He keeps trying to shove this burden on Deans' shoulders that Dean has clearly indicated he's not ready for, nor does he want. If Sam is so compassionate where is his compassion for his own brother. It seems to me that a better approach would be for Sam to tell Dean that he gets Dean not being Jack's biggest fan but can they compromise and Sam will primarily handle jack and Dean not do anything until Jack becomes a threat. I think Dean would have agreed to that. Sam's also putting himself in a position to completely absolve himself of responsibility if things go sideways. As @gonzosgirrl pointed out Sam ambushed Dean and forced that fight. Now, if Sam loses Jack's trust it won't because Sam wasn't honest and was planning to use him, it will be because Dean told. The writers have that wrapped up in a neat little bow. Let's say that this time Sam is right about Jack. That's he's not dangerous. Sam started off drinking demon blood with good intentions and that very quickly got out of control and ended badly. How many times have things with good intentions gone sideways on this show? Jack is 10x more powerful then Sam ever was and they have no way to stop him. It almost happened with Asmodeus. Sam they could stop with a bullet. Jack they're powerless. TL:DR version- Sam's view of I got a second chance, so Jack should is to simplistic.

It's kind of ironic that Dean is dead inside but is showing more life then he has since 12.B

I do find that Jensen is looking more slender than I've ever seen him. That picture of him and JDM's son showed how slender he is. While that would explain Dean's bulkiness but his height didn't change, and Jared is only a few inches taller. I can't see it being a coincidence that multiple directors on their own have taken to using these odd camera angles to make Jared seem that much bigger. It has to be deliberate.

I think its all Jensen acting against the script. I think he's doing his best to soften the writing but he can only do so much. I have no doubt in my mind that Dabb's intention was mean a-hole Dean and compassionate best big brother ever Sam. Because Sam has to be better at even that. I think the whole "grief" thing was all Jensen as well. I mean we had Singer pinching his ear over the whole Dean doesn't want to look for Mary thing. There was no mention of it from anyone except Jensen at comic con. I think Jensen tried to make sense of it all and decided to play up the grief angle because it was the only way he could wrap his head around it. Then I think Dabb and Singer copied Jensen's answer but never really had any intention of actually exploring it. I think when Cas comes back your right Dean will simply stop being sad. There won't be any real pay off. But not before Dean's made to learn multiple lessons and apologize to Jack, Sam and Mary because Dean's feeling never matter to anyone. We had one person show Dean compassion so far and that came from Missouri of all people. For all the Sam has so much empathy posts I'm seeing he's shown none toward his own brother. Dean is supposedly struggling to put one foot in front of the other but all Sam cares about is that Dean is mean to Jack. But when Sam has a pet project Dean quickly becomes second fiddle to Sam. But I do agree this is a nice vacation from ValiumDean. But I suspect he'll be back after episode 6. It's why I disliked the back half of s12. Dean is lied to and betrayed (3 times by Cas in one episode) but yet he does all the apologizing and compromising. Talk about victim shaming.

For me the Jack storyline isn't working. I don't dislike the character, I just find him boring. Now, Alex is doing a good job with is trying to convey Jack's good vs evil story, but I find the writing isn't backing this up. What I mean is I feel like the writers have already made up their minds that Jack is a goody two shoes. So it kind of takes me out of the scene because I don't think the writers are actually interested in exploring Jack's dark side. So Jack wondering if he'll go bad doesn't ring true.

Or it could mean that Dabb and Singer contacted the directors. If the order came from on high, they'd have to follow it